BeagleBone-Black

[Mike O'Dell]

the Arduino is *wonderful* for *some* tasks.
It is an utterly frustrating waste of time for others.
Debugging with a JTAG interface is not my idea
of a good time.

that's also the problem with the r.pi - it's the VIC20 of ARM Linux boards.
if you read the r.pi list, a *lot* of people are getting very frustrated
because they went in with inflated expectations caused by the enthusiasm
of a $35 linux board. the $45 beagleboard-black is a *much* better use
of the $35 even if it does need another $10. it has enough additional
resources that you don't keep barking your shins stumbling around in
a too-small motel room in the dark. The software integration is a much
better job, too. again, another source of huge frustration on the r.pi list.

As for the necessity of using Windoze, the spark-gap CW of computing,
You DO NOT have to dual-boot anything, certainly not in any way that
involves modifying your Windoze machine in any manner other than
booting it from a CD.

All the reasonable Linux installations come with "Live CDs" now.
just boot your machine from the CD or DVD and it runs Linux
without ever acknowledging the existence of Windoze unless you
want it to. Want a persistent environment, several can put your
home directory on a USB flash stick so the CD and the flash stick
do everything and your Windoze machine is involate.
(Some will install the Linux world on a big flash stick and keep your
home directory there, too. Some machines have trouble booting
from flash sticks, though, so the CD and the stick are more general 
purpose.)

Andre, I don't think you're a luddite, but the argument that a Unicycle
is easier to learn than a Bicycle because it has one less wheel to control
is just wrong. There are times when not only Less is just Less, it's 
actually
Not Enough to be worth the trouble. This the essence of the difference
between "inexpensive" and "cheap".

     cheers,
     -mo



On 5/3/13 11:36 PM, Andre Kesteloot wrote:
> On 5/3/2013 22:37 PM, Louis Mamakos wrote:
>> It does, however, have a couple of embedded RISC microcontrollers 
>> ("PRU" - Programmable Real-Time Unit) which can be used to do various 
>> tricks with the I/O pins that might be interesting for some 
>> applications.  Sort of what the PIC devices could do; complex 
>> programmable bit-banging and I/O vs. having dedicated or special 
>> purpose hardware peripherals.  These microcontrollers have some sort 
>> of mailbox communication means with the ARM core so that they can 
>> each get the other's attention.
>>
>> http://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/Programmable_Realtime_Unit_Subsystem 
>>
>>
>> For example, make a few more extra "soft" UARTs: 
>> http://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/Soft-UART_Implementation_on_AM335X_PRU_-_Software_Users_Guide
>>
>> The Beaglebone Black looks really neat; more I/O pins than the RPi.  
>> I might have to get one, hopefully it won't end up on the pile of all 
>> the other cool widgets.
>>
>> louie
>> wa3ymh
>
> Louie,
> Mike,
>
> Indeed, the Beaglebone specifications look attractive, but I want, for 
> the moment anyway, to concentrate on the Arduino.
> Why, might you ask, is André behaving like a luddite?
>
> a) first, because every other week now, or so it seems to me, someone 
> comes up with yet a new super-duper board, that does fantastic things, 
> but the average Ham still does not get involved with it.
> Why not concentrate on what we have?
> My intent is to work on Ham projects, not pie-in-the sky ones, that 
> might need a 1 GHz clock.
>
> b) second, because the Arduino has an IDE that works with Windows, and 
> that is still, by far, what most Hams use.
> Using the Beaglebone, one would have to install (dual boot ! etc) and 
> learn a new operating system: Linux.
> Far too complicated for most Hams, in my opinion.
>
> my $0.05 worth
>
> 73,
> André
>
>
>
>